Mass Effect makes its way to the PC

Mass Effect has definitely been one of the best-selling games released last year for the Xbox 360, with somewhere around 1.6 million copies sold since its debut in November. Although Microsoft has repeatedly claimed that the game would always be an Xbox 360 exclusive, following EAs acquisition of developer BioWare, news that the popular sci-fi RPG will be making its way to the PC came as no real surprise.

EA did surprise us by giving out a release date of as soon as May, though. Much like previous BioWare releases, the Mass Effect port will feature a revamped interface and presentation specifically optimized for the PC including fully customizable controls, high-resolution visuals, hotkey-assigned run-and-gun controls, a new decryption mini-game, and a new inventory screen GUI and functionality.

In the official press release, Frank Gibeau, President of EAs Games Label said the company struck an agreement with Microsoft to handle future publishing for Mass Effect. But now that EA has officially taken over all publishing duties for the series, one question remains unanswered: does this new agreement limit what platforms future Mass Effect titles can appear on, or is the franchise now free to appear on PS3, Wii, Xbox 360 and PC?